Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Yeşilay Sign Protocol to Combat Addiction

A cooperation protocol was signed between Yeşilay and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Turkey to protect society from harmful habits, combat addictions, and promote preventive and rehabilitative public health activities. The signing ceremony was held with the participation of Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Ersoy and Yeşilay General President Prof. Dr. Mücahit Öztürk.

Under the protocol, the two institutions will conduct activities to combat addictions in all provinces of Turkey; they will work together in developing, enriching and disseminating projects.

Yeşilay General President Prof. Dr. Mücahit Öztürk, expressing that Yeşilay believes in the importance of culture and art activities in combating addictions and has implemented many projects in this regard, stated: "While our state guarantees the protection of youth through the constitution, it is implementing necessary measures to protect them from addictive substances and bad habits. As Yeşilay, for a century we have been working to keep our youth away from addictions and to instill in them good and healthy living habits. We greatly value cooperating with our ministries to ensure that our work reaches more people and to work together for the future generations of our country. The culture and arts field is an area we greatly value in this respect and have developed many projects for. Through the Healthy Ideas Short Film Competition, we encourage youth to think and create on the subject of addiction; through the International Cartoon Competition we bring the effects of addiction to the agenda in a creative language, and through the Healthy Generation Healthy Future Competition we aim to instill awareness of good living from early ages. With this protocol we have signed with our Ministry of Culture and Tourism, we will reach more people with both the results of these projects and gain the opportunity to raise awareness by having direct contact with all age groups from 7 to 77 in institutions affiliated with our ministry. We thank our Minister for his support and hope this cooperation will be beneficial for our country," he said. Ministry of Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Ersoy, noting that the Council for Combating Addiction, established by Presidential Circular in 2019, is carrying out work in many fields, stated: "As the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, we provide support in combating addictions both within the scope of our events and through exhibitions, seminars and conferences. In our film production support, we prioritize the fight against addiction. Through the work titled 'Before It's Too Late' prepared by our General Directorate of State Theatres for the purpose of combating addictions, we have reached more than 22,000 theatre enthusiasts. In digital games, another important area related to addictions, we are also conducting a meticulous evaluation process. With this protocol signed between our ministry and Yeşilay, we aim to increase and diversify activities and develop joint projects. I hope this cooperation will be beneficial and serve our purposes well."

Combating addictions in all fields from cinemas to theatres and libraries

Under the protocol, the ministry will provide support to competitions organized by Yeşilay, while communication support will also be provided to these competitions. A "Yeşilay and Healthy Life Corner" will be established in State Theatres in areas related to children. Works that place in the "International Cartoon and Healthy Generation Healthy Future" competitions organized by Yeşilay will be exhibited in the foyer areas of theatres and appropriate areas of National Libraries. Festivals, artistic events and cinema facilities will be utilized to reach broad audiences with Yeşilay's activities and awareness-raising work. Additionally, Yeşilay information and training content will be included in in-service training programs to be conducted for ministry personnel.